1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device and a method for converting an input signal, with the input signal comprising a bipolar pulse with a positive part and a negative part of same duration which encodes a bit.
2. Description of the Related Art
In almost any field of modern semi-conductor technology, binary signals, or signals encoding information represented in binary form, are transmitted. The so-called single-ended signaling technique provides particularly low requirements as regards circuitry and, therefore, particularly low manufacturing costs. According to the single-ended signaling technique, an electrical signal is transmitted via a single line. A reference potential is preferably transmitted via a second single line. The voltage of the electrical signal against the reference potential encodes (in binary form) the information to be transmitted. The single-ended signaling technique, however, comprises serious disadvantages. Among these are a low signal swing, the necessity of providing an additional synchronization signal, reference voltage or reference current, and insufficient suitability for high transmission rates, or band-widths, and great cable lengths.
Therefore, single-ended signaling technique has so far been restricted to simple applications with small bandwidths and/or short transmission paths. Otherwise, on the side of the receiver, an additional clock or an additional reference signal is necessary for converting the input signal, thus enabling safe decoding. The additional clock or the additional reference signal needs to be provided to the receiver via additional lines and/or an additional network.